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Taxistas, Unite…

From our friends at Frontera NorteSur, the on-line, U.S.-Mexico border news service from the Center for Latin American and Border Studies at the University of New Mexico (Las Cruces).

Mexico City cabbies vs. wannabe Übermensch, 1938.

Protests against Uber and other “ride-sharing” companies are spreading across Latin America and Europe. In Mexico, an active group called Mexico City Organized Taxi Drivers (TOCDMX) is intensifying a movement against the capital city government’s plans to regulate Uber and Cabify and allow the companies to legally operate.

Turning up the pressure in its demands, the TOCDMX has announced plans for a July 29 city-wide work stoppage. On the same day, while Mexico City cabbies halt work, colleagues in Spain plan to demonstrate in solidarity outside Mexican diplomatic offices in Madrid and Barcelona.

Jose Miguel Funes, representative of the Madrid Elite Taxi Association, said the protests will be part of an emerging global movement against Uber and similar firms.

“Those transnational enterprises are dangerous and together in this war,” Funes was quoted. “That’s why taxi drivers from Colombia, Brazil, France, Spain, and Mexico are joining forces to impede their entry into the sector.”

Taxi drivers in France last month blockaded roads, choked traffic and disrupted transportation centers in a militant protest against UberPop that turned violent in some places.

The growing world-wide conflict pits Uber and other “ride-sharing” companies, which electronically link drivers and passengers for supposedly lower prices, against traditional cabbies and their employers who regard the newcomers as an unfair competition that doesn’t pay taxes and permits, sufficiently screen and train drivers, and protect passengers.

In addition to the streets, the dispute between Uber and the established taxi business is now a hot issue in the courts of Spain and other countries.

Related

Sorry but I’m with UBER on this one, as if you believe in free trade, then hey’ these monopolies that fleece people day in day out in cities around the world must now face competition, and what I know of UBER’ (I know it’s not much) but all I know is that monopolies are bad, and these cities fleece tourist’s and locals alike, and we have no choice but to cough up , for when we go for a holiday, a large percentage must be set-aside for these people who sit and wait for suckers arriving tired from flights from wherever .
best Alex

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